Fragonard and the Fantasy Figure: Painting the Imagination

A fresh interpretation of Fragonard's figures de fantaisie, Fragonard and the Fantasy Figure: Painting the Imagination reconnects Fragonard's paintings with a neglected tradition of fantasy figures in European art, and situates them within the cultural and aesthetic contexts of eighteenth-century France. This study defines Fragonard as a painter of the imagination, and shows how the fantasy figure, with its unusual juxtapositions and humour, engages the imagination of artist and viewer.